Monday, January 30, 2017

Why Gucci's 2017 Pre-Fall Campaign Featuring All Black Models Matters Alessandro Michele is sending a message to the fashion world and beyond.

As with every other fashion brand, Gucci has begun debuting its seasonal campaign, but it’s noticeably unlike all the others we’ve seen so far. Teasers for the Pre-Fall 2017 campaign started rolling out via Instagram last week, and there was no pink haze or patch-embroidered clothes to catch our eye — it was the models themselves that really matter here. A series of nine videos serve to introduce us to Alessandro Michele’s new faces — every single one of them black.
While the fashion industry has been centered around creating beautiful clothes forever, it’s had an ugly issue with diversity for just as long. Season after season, observations of improvements across magazine covers, ads and runways alike prove to be dismal as progress continues to take place in what feels like a painstakingly slow process. 2016 was the most inclusive yet with Kanye West’s YEEZY Season 4 using nothing but women of color for example, but then there were still brands like The Row or Balenciaga featuring virtually zero and driving home the disparity that exists within luxury fashion.
One month into January and Gucci is already setting an early example, while sending an important message following what’s been a fervently divisive time in not just fashion but also the very world within which it exists. In the clips uploaded to Instagram, we get to know each model through their casting videos as an off-screen interviewer asks “What’s your spirit animal?” or “What does it mean to have soul?” In this casual approach, Michele’s way of telling us “Black Lives Matter” is more subtle than writing it on a sign or an open letter that says so. But, as is the case with history, there’s more than one way to protest — to get a message across. Interpretation has always been an important element in fashion, and his sentiment is coming loud and clear.
Meet Camille, Akua and Abdulaye below, and find the rest on Gucci’s Instagram.

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